School police armed with AR-15s

A San Diego police officer guards Kumeyaay Elementary School in Tierrasanta Tuesday as parents pick up their children after a lockdown. The school was locked down after a homicide suspect was spotted in the area. The man was later arrested.
— Sean M. Haffey

A San Diego police officer guards Kumeyaay Elementary School in Tierrasanta Tuesday as parents pick up their children after a lockdown. The school was locked down after a homicide suspect was spotted in the area. The man was later arrested.
— Sean M. Haffey

The president of the San Diego school board questioned why the district’s police department authorized the use of assault weapons by its officers after he learned about the weaponry in a newspaper article.

The district police department’s former chief, Don Braun, approved the use of AR-15 platform rifles for officers in July 2010, without board approval or public discussion. They have been deployed in at least seven campus incidents.

School board President John Lee Evans was surprised to learn about the arsenal by reading it in the Los Angeles Times, which quoted San Diego school police officials in a Jan. 23 article about another school district arming its security forces.

“I did not know these rifles existed in the district,” Evans said. “I don’t know if policies have to be changed, but the school board and the public need to be informed as to why these are needed and how they will be used.”

Five of the assault weapons were deployed on Tuesday when five schools were put on lockdown with a murder suspect on the loose in Tierrasanta. According to police officials, the incident was the seventh time assault weapons have been deployed.

Like other law enforcement agencies, San Diego Unified over the years has reviewed its tactics and weaponry as school shootings became more frequent nationwide. Braun, who retired last year, researched how departments regulated the use and storage of rifles before he decided to arm officers with semi-automatic weapons.

Deputy Superintendent Phil Stover said Braun was not required to alert the board or the public of his decision to authorize the weapons.

“The police have the ability to issue the equipment and the methodology necessary to do their job. I think it was a proper decision at the time,” Stover said. “To put it in context, those kind of decisions did not carry the same scrutiny they would carry today.”

To prepare officers to use the powerful rifles, Braun approved 16-hour government-funded trainings and proficiency tests required of officers who carry semi-automatic weapons on duty. Grappling with budget cuts, Braun backed off plans to bill the district for the rifles and instead told officers they would have to make the $1,000 purchase if they wanted to carry the weapons.

So far, 17 members of the 43-person police force have purchased the weapons. Among them is Rueben Littlejohn, who succeeded Braun as district police chief.

“I believe them to be a necessary tool for law enforcement in this era, and I believe that all officers should receive the same level of training in the use of all weapons available to law enforcement,” he said.

Littlejohn praised Braun for keeping the district prepared to protect San Diego students. He understands why Braun did not feel compelled to alert the board.

“If no other police departments at the time had rifles, I might say yes. But by 2010, rifles had been a standard tool for law enforcement for the last decade. Therefore, I support how Chief Braun handled it,” Littlejohn said.

Evans, the school board president, said, "I am very impressed with the leadership of Chief Rueben Littlejohn to keep our children safe in school and I have great respect for his judgment."

The deaths of 20 children and six educators in December at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., by a gunman armed with an assault rifle has heightened the issues of campus safety and gun access.

Last week, the police force of the Fontana Unified School District was criticized when its school board learned that officers were armed with military-style rifles for months without board knowledge. The Jan. 23 Los Angeles Times article on the controversy quoted San Diego Unified police Lt. Joe Florentino about the program here. Evans said he asked for more information about the program after reading that story.

The San Diego Regional Law Enforcement Policy Academy recommends a complement of handguns and rifles for first responders faced with an active shooter. The military-style weapons are designed to allow officers to increase their distance from potential targets (and innocent children) and increase shooter accuracy.

The Department of Justice allows officers to purchase their own rifles and ammunition with authorization from their chief.